Bitcoins and Online Casinos

Bitcoins are a great, anonymous and low cost way to make online payments and purchases. More and more casinos are starting to allow Bitcoin players. But for the time being, there are only a select few casinos that accept the digital currency.

While Bitcoins have many great advantages and benefits for the player and the casino itself, this cryptocurrency really is still in its infancy and there are many factors that may affect the use of it online. To give you the edge, we’ve outlined everything you need to know about Bitcoin and Bitcoin casinos right here.

Getting Your Hands on Bitcoins

Before you do anything, you first you need to buy Bitcoins online. If you are going to be spending under $2000, it will be easier to purchase the coins from a smaller trader that offers you both Bitcoins and a wallet service (wallets can be used to store your Bitcoins safely). Usually there will be a 1% service charge included.

If you wish to buy more than $2000 worth of Bitcoins then it would be better to make your purchase from a Bitcoin exchange site. Each country will have their own exchange and they operate just like banks in the sense that when you open an account with one of these exchanges, you will need to provide your personal information.

Other methods for getting your Bitcoins include mining them yourself. The way Bitcoins work means that individuals can run the Bitcoin blockchain program on their computer and generate small amounts of Bitcoins.

At the start of Bitcoin’s life this would have been a simple and reasonable solution to gaining more Bitcoins, but since the original Bitcoin blockchain has now become so huge, you will need an immense amount of processing power to make this venture profitable, unless you are a big company with dedicated hardware to spare.

Spending Your Bitcoins

Currently more than 100 000 merchants and service providers accept Bitcoins as payments. To make purchases from vendors you will need to make use of a Bitcoin wallet.

It is not a must for players to make use of these virtual wallets, but it does make things a bit simpler when you make or accept payments. It also provides additional security since hackers would ideally target exchanges and servers with mass amounts of Bitcoins rather than individual users’ wallets.

The Benefits Of Bitcoin Use

Solid fraud and Identity theft protection – Due to the anonymous and decentralised system of Bitcoins, the currency is essentially fraud proof. The effort someone would need to go through to create a fraudulent Bitcoin would take just as much effort as simply mining your own Bitcoin instead.

Quick payment transfers – Making a deposit or withdrawal with Bitcoins is near instantaneous once it is processed and added to the blockchain. You won’t have to endure the usual 5 working day bank transfer times.

Low to non-existent fees – Bitcoin payments or withdrawals are absolutely free to process. You may however pay certain service providers to have your transactions processed, or in other words added to the blockchain, much quicker.

The Disadvantages Of Bitcoin Use

Illegal activities – The anonymity provided to users of Bitcoins will also transfer to any hackers or fraudsters who may attempt to steal your coins. They will be just as untraceable as the owner of the coins will.

Lack of authority – Bitcoins are not regulated by an overall authority so if you have any issues or complaints then there will be no one you can report them too. This also transfers to online casinos. Many casinos that use or accept Bitcoins also do not carry licences by regulatory gambling authorities.

Limited in application – Bitcoins are not as flexible in their use as cash, there are no complex financial markets, contracts or transactions for Bitcoins.

Bitcoin Casinos

Bitcoins are still accepted only at certain casinos. You will see if a casino accepts Bitcoins if the Bitcoin logo is on the site’s homepage.

Some examples of Bitcoin online casinos include:

Ignition Casino

Slots.lv

Bovada Casino

Drake Casino

Planet 7 Casino

The Benefits Of Bitcoin Casinos

Bitcoins are a great option for both players and the casino itself. Since there are no administrative or processing fees attached to Bitcoin transactions, the bank and the player save money.

Bitcoins also allow you to sign up faster at an online casino, as you do not have to go through the administrative process of registering your details. Bitcoins can be used in real money games anonymously, so there is no long application process to verify your bank details.

In the future, Bitcoin casinos may become more commonplace, and already, sites that are accepting them are drawing in a new generation of cryptocurrency savvy player.